RECORD 38.7 MILLION PASSENGERS USE DOHA GATEWAY IN 2019

A record 38.7 milion passengers (+12%) passed through Hamad International Airport (HIA) in Qatar last year.

The Doha gateway attributes the upturn to a number of new routes and increased frequency on existing ones.

New destinations included Davao (Philippines), Rabat (Morocco), Izmir (Turkey), Gaborone (Botswana), Langkawi (Malaysia), Mogadishu (Somalia), Valetta (Malta) and Lisbon (Portugal).

Three new cargo destinations were also added to HIA’s network, namely Istanbul, New York and Almaty. 

The fifteen airlines to increase services or upgauge aircraft on existig routes during 2019 included Kuwait Airways, Salam Air, Philippine Airlines and Oman Air.

HIA also welcomed two new airline partners, Air India and Tarco Aviation.

The new additions meant that HIA handled 232,917 aircraft movements in 2019, 5.57% more than in 2018.

Hamad’s CEO, Badr Mohammed Al Meer, stated: “Last year was a spectacular one for HIA, having broken our record for the most number of passengers ever served since commencing our operations.

“Looking ahead, we’re focused on increasing our operational capacity through our major airport expansion project which is a vital part of the airports rapid growth and the country’s preparations to host the 2022 World Cup and beyond.”

HIA also announced a multi-phased airport expansion plan in 2019. 

Phase A of the expansion is set to comprise of a central concourse linking concourses D and E and will increase the airport’s capacity to more than 53 million passengers annually by 2022.

While Phase B, which will be completed after 2022, will extend concourses D and E to further enhance the airport’s capacity to more than 60 million passengers annually.

The expansion project will also feature a 10,000sqm indoor tropical garden, a 268sqm water feature, 11,720sqm of landscaped retail and F&B space and 9,000sqm of world-class Al Mourjan lounge.